The Wedding Episode and Why We’re in Love With It

Last week I blogged about my favorite Episode of Outlander and why that will never change. I asked all my lovely readers to share their favorite episodes as well. There were mixed answers but the overwhelming majority said The Wedding was their favorite episode. I would have to say that The Wedding is a close second for me to Sassenach. I do love to give my readers what they want so let’s dig into The Wedding episode! 

Why are we so obsessed with this episode? As an avid Outlander fan like myself, you’ve probably watched The Wedding Episode at minimum, a half dozen times and the reason is; we are ALL Claire in this episode. The fantasy of the strong Scottish Highlander sweeping us off our feet comes to fruition in The Wedding Episode. We become completely whisked away into the story and every time the scene returns to the wedding chamber, there is literally no one else in the room or world for that matter.

The episode starts off with Claire and Frank walking along a drizzly cobble stone road. Frank stops them in front of the courthouse in Westminister. They are about to meet Frank’s parents at a restaurant but he asks her to marry him right then and there. Sweet? Yes. Romantic? Not so much. Claire says yes and they kiss. 

The scene cuts to 1743 and Claire is kissing Jamie in a Candle lit church, this just got 1,000 times more romantic **fans self with hankie**. Claire’s voice over says “You forget your life after awhile,” you get this incredible sense of loneliness momentarily because she is the only one like her. An accidental time traveler, there was no guide to tell her what this would feel like and yet here she is trying to make sense of it all. She gazes into the dressing table mirror with a look of feigned stoicism and then suddenly Jamie enters the bridal chamber. Within the first seconds of their exchange you find out that the marriage must be consummated that night, and the wedding party will go on until they do. And we all think, oh it’s going down tonight!

Claire quickly suggests they have a drink. Back when I was single I always made sure I had a drink in hand if I was set up on a date (I’m a bit of a nervous talker and that’s never cute, I feel you Claire!). Jamie, the emotionally in tune hottie in plaid, assures her that he wasn’t planning to suddenly force himself on her. Claire seems relieved, and we all sigh and fall a little more in love with Jamie. 

“To a lady of grace, a woman or strength and a bride of astonishing beauty. My wife, Claire Fraser.” ~ Jamie

Claire comes right out with it and asks him why he agreed to marry her (because he was single, the best looking and the only one tall enough?). Black Jack Randall had ordered Claire to be delivered to Fort William by sundown the next day for questioning. After the violent encounter Claire had with him, Dougal decided she must be protected. 1. Because Claire didn’t rat out Dougal for raising funds for the Jacobite rebellion and 2. A little sip from the honesty stream, confirmed that Claire was definitely NOT a spy. So, Dougal was feeling pretty loyal to Mistress Beauchamp at this point. The only way to protect Claire from Black Jack Crazy Pants, was for her to marry a Scot thus becoming a Scot herself. Jamie agreed to marry Claire in order to protect her. 

“You married me to protect me?” Claire says with adoring eyes and sashays over to where Jamie sits at the end of the bed (and ALL of us sashay with her). 

They are going in for a kiss, “Tell me about your family!” she blurts interrupting the almost kiss. Beauchamp, we do not give a rats ass about his family! We yell at the screen! Oh wait he’s really cute when he talks, we are fine with this. Claire echoes our thoughts in the voice over, “He was charming, a born story teller, like most Scots.” Damn right he is.

Suddenly Angus and Rupert burst in to see if the deed (sexy time) has been done. The newly weds are both a little embarrassed by this intrusion partly I think because the inevitable is no longer avoidable. 

Then Claire suggests that perhaps its time to go to bed, which is directly followed by our favorite question from Jamie, “To bed, or to sleep?” **ferociously fanning ourselves**. Jamie then suggests that he help her remove her corset and assist with “the laces and such.” He holds out his hand to Claire and we get reminiscent feeling of the cover art with Jamie standing in front of Claire with an outstretched hand **so much symbolism – mind blown.** 

The laces are undone and the sexual tension is rising, Jamie kisses Claire passionately and she is pleasantly surprised and asks him where he learned to kiss like that. His response was a bit cocky (pun completely intended),“I said I was a virgin, not a monk. If I need guidance, I’ll ask.” 

He immediately needs guidance when he tries to take her from behind and Claire redirects Jamie so they are face to face. They flop onto the bed and again Jamie needs guidance because he’s crushing his little Sassenach with his giant (delicious hunk-of-a-man) self. A minute or so later the task has been completed and the devirginized Scotsman rolls off his wife.

I love their conversation following this because it’s so honest and kind of awkward. “Was it like you thought it would be?” Claire asks. Jamie hesitantly (an adorably) begins to explain how he thought sex usually goes, the back way, like horses. Again we are ALL CLAIRE when she giggles at his naivety. I mean come on, what is cuter than a sexually inexperienced hunk who also just so happens to be your husband in 1743? That’s right nothing is cuter than that.

 Moments later we are ALL Claire when she reassures him, “I did like it Jamie.” Damn right you did, so did we, don’t make our TV husband sad Beauchamp! Get it together! What happens in 1743 stays in 1743, Frank NEVER HAS TO KNOW! Claire starts to do what Claire does and freaks out a little and impulsively decides to walk out for all to see in her see-through shift. The crowd cheers that the deed is done.

What I love about when the scenes cut back to the wedding chamber is that it feels like nothing can touch them there, they are in their own little bubble of solace. Mo nighean donn, we hear Jamie say these words to Claire for the first time, and then we promptly order brown hair dye on amazon prime. How can three words that we don’t even understand be the sweetest thing we’ve ever heard???  Because – Jamie, that’s why.

The next segment of the episode begins to fill in the blanks of the events leading up to the wedding ceremony. There is a theme of threes in this episode, there’s the obvious, the three conditions Jamie had, the church, the dress and the ring. Our personal favorite of making love three times. 

However, there are also the less obvious threes as well, the three foes, as I like to call them, the looming threat of Black Jack, Dougal and his ulterior motives, and Claire’s guilty conscious. All three of those foes have the potential to cause quite a bit of trouble. Enough of that bunny trail, back to the romance. 

We learn that Jamie insists on wearing his clan tartan (yum). Murtagh and his grumpy explanations are my favorite “your red hair, your muckle size and Fraser colors.” Then Murtagh surprises us all and gets all sentimental and says “Your mother had the sweetest smile.” Followed by something near intelligible and then “Claire’s smile is just as sweet.” Oh Murtagh Fitzgibbons Fraser, we love you.

Next is the scene where the priest happily agrees to marry Claire and Jamie in the Church, just kidding. 

He was a little hesitant but it all works out in the end. Next we skip to our two favorite bridesmaids, Angus and Rupert. They remind of the seven dwarfs. If the seven dwarfs were big, Scottish and there were only two of them.

Who have been given the task of having a ring made for Claire from a key that Jamie gave them. 

Now all of us seasoned Outlander fans know that this is the key to Lallybroch, but Jamie does not reveal it to Claire at this point in time.

The next scene makes me giggle, when Ned Gowan is at the whorehouse trying to find a suitable wedding dress for Claire. Ned reminds we of a little grey mouse surrounded by so much delicious cheese he doesn’t know where to begin.

We are batting our doe eyes at Jamie when he tells her he remembers every moment of their wedding, “It was like I stepped outside on a cloudy day, and suddenly the sun came out.” We see Jamie dressed to the nines looking devastatingly handsome and we imagine it’s our wedding day, just call me Mrs. F.

Oh and then, there is the glory that is Claire’s dress. Has there ever been a more breathtaking dress that fit any human so perfectly in the history of time. The answer is no, no there is not and again we are ALL Claire in this moment, perfect colar bones and all.

“Your servant Madame,” Jamie says sincerely as we all swoon.

“I can’t marry you,” she says, “I don’t even know your real name.”

And then it happens, our husband officially introduces himself for the first time with perfect, intentional enunciation, James, Alexander, Malcolm, Mackenzie, Fraser. Claire blurts “Claire Elizabeth Beauchamp,” and holds her hand out to shake his. We’re nervous too Claire, we get you. Then our king of men, takes his bride’s hand in his turns it over a gently and places his hand on top. Our hearts skip a beat because our TV husband is so romantic.

The ceremony is something dreams are made of, the music, the candlelight and the poetic beauty of the Gaelic vows. You are blood of my blood and bone of my bone, I give you my body that we two may be one. I give you my spirit, til our life shall be done. Heaven help us, because that is the most romantic thing that has ever been said and we literally almost died.

The first kiss…sigh…and Jamie’s cute little smile. “When you kissed me like that, well maybe you weren’t so sorry to be marrying me after all.”

Then Claire says what we’ve all been waiting for, “Take off your shirt, I want to look at you.” Yes! For heavens sakes alive we all do! The next thing that happens is what I call the Sexy Inspection. It’s perhaps the sexiest inspection that has ever happened in the history of time (my strongly biased but correct opinion). Those Scottish buns….the hallelujah chorus sings at the sight of them.

“Well then, fair is fair. Take off yours as well.” Yes sir! TV husband takes a step back to look at his bride. “Have you never seen a naked woman before?” Claire asks. “Aye,” Jamie replies, “but not one so close, and not one that’s mine.”

Sweet mother of all that is holy, we are enraptured in the moment with our eyes glued to the screen. This time the lovemaking is more passionate, more real and Claire is fully embracing (literally) her new husband. And we are LOVING EVERY SECOND. Sigh.

Claire ventures downstairs for some water, leaving a sleeping Jamie, content in his post orgasmic slumber. The main hall is empty until Dougal decides to show up, he explains that he’s just returned from seeing Captain Spoil All Our Fun Every Chance He Gets Randall. Dougal assures her that he won’t be a problem anymore. Then he gets creepy and hits on Claire, “I find you to be the most singular woman Claire,” he purrs. No kidding creeper, get a life! Rupert conveniently interrupts the awkward encounter and Claire slips away.

Back in the bubble of the wedding chamber, Claire is gazing stoically and Jamie awakens. Our TV husband saunters across the room in all his naked glory. Jamie removes something from the dresser and brings it to Claire. He places a string of “Scotch Pearls” (said with the most amazing accent ever) and Jamie explains that they belonged to his mother and now they belong to his wife. The way Jamie says wife makes my heart skip a beat, there is ownership and pride in his voice and Claire picks up on all of it. You can feel that their connection grow stronger with each passing moment. “Few things I have left of her,” Jamie says of his mother, “They’re very precious to me, as are you Claire.” And then we are ALL Claire in this moment.

 We kiss new husband and go for round three but this time it’s not so much out of desire or lust or duty. It’s a declaration of oneness and an expression of vulnerability and so very beautiful. Sigh…

The next morning they are side by side and Jamie is quickly getting his boots on so he can try and scavenge some food from downstairs. 

Claire has a dreamy doe eyed look on her face, so do we Claire, so do we. Jamie departs after a sweet kiss and then Claire begins to tidy up. She shakes out her wedding dress and reality hits the floor in the form of her gold wedding band. 

You see the look on her face that says, oh yeah that Frank guy. You can see she is torn. Who should she choose? For us the answer is simple, Jamie. For Claire the answer is anything but simple. Either way we are going to promptly watch the wedding episode again just for good measure.

Because…duh 

I’d love to hear what part of the wedding episode made your heart skip a beat…or stop completely 😍

Xo,

Lauren